Trisha Mukherjee

Sustainable Bruins

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Trisha's actions

Action Track: Healing & Renewal

Eat Mindfully

I will eat all of my meals without distractions, e.g., phone, computer, TV, or newspaper.

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Trisha Mukherjee 3/06/2022 2:18 PM

Hey everyone! I recently attended this webinar about how the climate crisis impacts mental health. It was very informative, and I wanted to share a couple of things that I learned from it.

They defined eco-anxiety as chronic fear of environmental doom, and this is what they addressed during most of the presentation. They talked about how minority groups are more likely to be affected by the climate crisis and are therefore more likely to take action against climate change, which I thought was very interesting.

They also asked the question: "What can I do to channel my anxiety into something positive (in relation to the climate crisis)?". They recommended that we ask ourselves these questions: "What brings you joy? What gets you out of the bed in the morning? What are you good at?". Then, they suggested that we take the answers to these questions to figure out how to make your unique impact on the climate crisis.

So my question to you is: What are your interests? How can you use these interests to make an impact on the climate crisis?

I can start with my answer. I have said in a couple of posts, I am very passionate about fitness, and work as a Crossfit Coach. This is something that I love to do and when answering this question, was trying to figure out ways to use my job and this passion to make a change. I have thought of a couple of things already that would hopefully have pretty lasting effects. I first am going to start encouraging my clients to take more walks. I already encourage my clients to stay as active as possible. But, I will encourage them to take a walk to the store instead of driving, or bike to the gym instead of driving. This will allow them to get their steps in, get some light cardio in, be more present in their surroundings, and also reduce their carbon footprint. When clients ask about nutrition advice, I can advise them to try out some vegan or vegetarian options at the store or try out some vegan or vegetarian meals when they go out to restaurants. I have also noticed that a lot of the members at my gym often buy plastic bottles instead of using a reusable water bottle. So, I am working on asking the owners of my gym to stop selling plastic water bottles, and instead selling reusable water bottles with our logo on it (for free advertising) and more importantly to shift the members over to reusable water bottles instead of constantly using plastic.

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Trisha Mukherjee 2/27/2022 11:29 AM

I actually decided to try a meatless day this week. This is a pretty big deal for me, growing up in a family that has some sort of meat in every meal of the day. My dad literally thinks that he has not eaten a meal if meat is not included. This is how my meals looked for the day:

Breakfast:
Bagel, creamcheese, protein shake

Lunch:
Spaghetti with marinara sauce with some parmesan cheese on top.
Caesar salad on the side.

I tried this meatless day on Monday ("meatless Monday"), so I had time for a new recipe to experiment with for dinner.

*** Just a note, I do not usually cook with measurements. I kind of just throw things together and hope for the best.

Dinner: I tried these quick and easy veggie fajitas, which were delicious.
Ingredients:
- can of black beans
- small flour tortillas
- guacamole (small tub from TJs)
- Mexican cheese
- bell peppers
- red onion
- 1 garlic clove
- 1/2 tsp chilli powder
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- lime juice

1. I started out by cooking the chopped up bell peppers and red onion until they browned a bit. Then, I stirred in the minced garlic and the rest of the spices to make the fajita mix. Then I added some lime juice. Mixed a bunch and then transferred it to a bowl.
2. In the same pan, I put the canned black beans in just to warm them up. Then added the fajita mix back in. Stirred a bunch.
3. I then warmed up some flour tortillas and ate my dinner!!

It was delicious!!

I thought going in that I would miss the usual eggs that I eat in the morning for breakfast, the meatballs with my spaghetti, and the chicken I eat with my fajitas. I did not actually feel like I was missing meat with my meals today! I think I might be able to start incorporating a meatless Monday into every week!

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Trisha Mukherjee 2/24/2022 5:07 PM

I have been reading a lot of the posts lately and a lot of people have mentioned going to their local farmer's market. So, this week I thought I would give it a try! Today I walked over to the Westwood Farmer's Market and it was so cute! Not only was it so much fun to walk around and see what each tent was selling, but it was also super nice seeing friends walking around and shopping as well! I ran out of fruits this week so I decided to buy some berries: specifically, some strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries. I loved that they sold the berries in compostable containers because that cut down on the plastic that I would normally buy the berries in. It was also super nice to see that the fruit was locally produced, so it was nice to know where my fruit was coming from. Also, I might be biased but the fruit tasted so much fresher than the fruit that I get from grocery stores. I also was able to get a lot of steps in, and it was a great place to get my daily walk in. I think the next farmer's market that I am going to have to try is the Brentwood Farmer's market!

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Trisha Mukherjee 2/20/2022 8:10 PM

I have recently been looking at small ways to reduce my carbon footprint. I mentioned in an earlier post that I have begun using my car less and walking a lot more (for groceries, to clear my head, etc.). This has been working really well for me so far. However, now I am trying to adjust some more of my habits one at a time. One change I recently made was using Tupperware (reusable plastic containers) instead of Ziploc bags, or plastic wrap to carry my lunch to school. I usually have to pack lunch everyday and this usually includes a wrap or some kind of sandwich, a fruit, and a granola bar. Usually, I would eat my lunch and make sure to recycle the Ziploc bag that I used and compost the remains of my fruit (apple core, orange peel). I realized that while I was making a conscious effort to recycle and compost the trash that I created from my lunch, a better way would be to just use a reusable container. Why use something that I don't need to when I can just reuse something? One downside of this for me was that I would have to take extra time to do dishes at the end of the day, and it would often be heavier to carry in my backpack. The pros, however, are that I have stopped buying Ziploc bags and plastic wrap, which cuts down on one expense. And the best pro is that I have been able to once again change a habit to reduce my carbon footprint. I know this does not sound like that big of a change, but I think that slowly changing my lifestyle habits (however small they may be) one at a time, will allow me to have the greatest positive impact that I can have on the environment.

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- Kyleigh Follis 2/24/2022 3:56 PM
  
  I love that you have been using more Tupperware. I feel like it's such an easy switch for people to make. Growing up I would always bring lunch to school in a brown paper bag with all of my food inside various Ziploc bags. This was simply for the convenience of throwing it away and not having to carry around a lunch box with me all day. I never really gave much thought to how much waste I was generating every day. As I became more aware of climate change and individual responsibility, I bought a lunch box and reusable silicon storage bags. Whenever I need to bring lunch with me outside of my apartment I always use Tupperware and my reusable storage bags. I honestly don't mind carrying around the extra weight in my backpack. I also bring the same reusable food storage containers with me when I go to work. A lot of my coworkers tend to buy food during our shift, but I always bring food from home. Not only do I end up spending less money because I cook my own food, but I also generate less waste compared to my coworkers who eat using various plastic dishes and utensils. I also have tried to switch away from single use plastic utensils. These are so convenient for the on the go eating compared to lagging around a metal fork with me, but there is just no reason for me to use the plastic ones once and have it end up in the landfill. My roommate got me a nice set of metal utensils (knife, fork, spoon, chopsticks) for my birthday a few years ago, and I used to just keep that in my backpack for whenever I needed it. Recently I bought a cutlery set that is very compact and fits into a silicon storage case which I absolutely love. Its very lightweight and takes up a small amount of space. I don't mind having to wash all of these items after I use them as opposed to just being able to throw out the plastic containers. I have gotten used to cleaning them every day along with other dishes I use when cooking so it is just something that goes into my routine now. I don't have a dishwasher but a lot of these items are also dishwasher safe so it would be even less effort to use them for other people. While some of these items can have a little bit of an initial investment cost, I think it is worth spending the money on because we don't need more plastic waste. Also, if you have these reusable items you don't have to spend money on plastic bags or utensils anymore which can add up over time. I also carry around a metal straw with me because I drink a lot of coffee. When I lived in the dorms I would get an iced coffee from the take out restaurants almost every day so I used my metal straw a lot. There was just no reason for me to use the plastic or "compostable" straws they offered me. My straw had a silicon tip on the end so it was honestly a better texture than normal plastic or paper straws. I bought all of my roommates the same reusable straws because it is just something so easy that they all could switch to using. Something I'd like to look more into would be using a more environmental friendly napkin. I go through a lot of napkins or paper towels when I eat meals, so I want to see if there is something that I could reuse.
  
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